1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to sport devices and more particularly to an improved type of archery arrow rest.
2. Prior Art
Various archery arrow rests have been devised for attachment to an archery bow to permit shooting an arrow therefrom with proper clearance of the bow. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,748,964, 4,827,895 and 5,070,855, among others.
With the advent of modern archery technology, however, many conventional arrow rests are of little use. In this regard, in an effort to increase arrow speed and thus increase the effective target size by flattening out the arrow trajectory, archery arrow manufacturers have begun to produce arrows with narrow shaft diameters and high tensile strength.
This has been accomplished through the use of resin-impregnated graphite and carbon cloth wound bi-directionally around a mandrel and heated to above the set point of the resin to form a hollow arrow shaft which is light in weight, strong and of small diameter. The newest and best shafts are reinforced by very thin-walled, hollow, high tensile strength aluminum cores to increase their consistency of spine, weight and straightness and to prevent their shattering, which can occur with either solid core or hollow unreinforced carbon and graphite arrows.
Unfortunately graphite cloth and carbon cloth have rough and abrasive exteriors due both to their weave characteristics and to the inherent physical characteristics of the carbon and/or graphite fibers from which they are made . In as much as arrows made from such cloth are fired at great speed from an arrow rest, for example at speeds of up to about 350 feet per second, considerable frictional wear of the rest occurs from contact with the exterior of the shaft.
As the rest wears, the shooting accuracy thereof decreases because the point of aim changes. Arrows critically aimed from a new rest strike the target in a location different from the location of strike on the target when the rest is worn down by friction. Moreover, rests are frequently expensive and difficult to replace. Whenever a new rest is installed, the archer must go through a tedious test period of shooting to determine the proper point of aim for different distances from the target. This tuning procedure takes much time and effort. Accordingly, archers are constantly seeking arrow rests which remain sturdy and reliable and do not require frequent replacement.
Since 1985, so-called 3-D shooting has come to the fore as a favorite pastime. Thus, 3-D shooting refers to shooting at targets which are in the form of life-like and life-sized animals such as are encountered during hunting. These targets are usually molded out of self-healing rubberized foam and are painted true colors which adds realism similar to the sport of hunting.
Such targets are placed throughout a wooded environment at random distances to accurately simulate actual encounters with bowhunting game. The distance from the bowhunter to each target must be guessed. In order to permit the bowhunter to hit the targets, the bowsight must be accurately calibrated for distances by trial and error and remain accurate. As pointed out above, this accuracy is seriously degraded when the arrow rest employed with the bow rapidly wears down, as is the case when carbon and/or graphite arrows are used. Specifically, the prong or forked tip of the rest launcher arm rapidly wears, thus causing a change in the aiming point and soon breaks down, rendering the rest useless.
There is also another consideration for arrow rests. In as much as carbon and graphite arrows are very expensive, it is desireable to employ for certain uses of the bow less expensive arrows comprising shafts of tempered aluminum or the like. However, such shafts have larger diameters than those of the previously described carbon and graphite arrows.
It is important for shooting accuracy that the arrow be closely cradled by the arrow rest so that it will not wobble in the rest or slip off the rest before it is shot therefrom. A rest designed to closely cradle a small diameter carbon or graphite arrow cannot safely support a larger diameter aluminum or wood arrow. Thus, a new rest must be installed on the bow if arrows having shafts of differing diameters are to be employed.
It would be highly desireable to be able to provide an improved archery arrow rest which could resist wear from carbon and graphite arrows and could also closely and securely cradle arrows having shafts of various diameters. Such rest should be inexpensive to make and convenient to install and use, and should also be thoroughly reliable. It should not produce arrow shaft wear to any appreciable degree and should be small enough to assure that the vanes of the arrow will not strike it during shooting of the arrow therefrom. It should also be adjustable to suit the requirements of various bow configurations, etc.